Old Lincoln Days continued

Old Lincoln Days in Lincoln, New Mexico

The Old Lincoln Days festivities center around the Lincoln County War and the goings on in the county  which pretty much centered around what Billy the Kid, alias William F. Bonney did and the famous escape from the local jail.  From the 1880's until now, nothing has changed and the controversy continues.  Did Pat Garret really kill Billy The Kid in Fort Sumner that night?  This was the question that was posed and discussed at great length around the campfire in Lincoln on the weekend of August 3-4, 2013. I believe the consensus was that Garret did kill someone that night.  He shot the person in the face and the body was buried shortly after, within an hour or two.  Positive identification was not possible.  Even much later there was nobody to do a DNA test because of floods in 1889 and 1904 washing away critical markers.  Brushy Bill Roberts who claimed to be the real Billy the Kid lived out his life in Hico, Texas and died there in 1950 wasn't even given a second thought by the campfire members.   What happened to the Kid?  No one really submitted an answer to that question, only questions like what happened to the girlfriend and the baby?  Did the Kid really go to England and die at a ripe old age?  There is a marker in a cemetery that says he is buried in England......Did Tunstall somehow arrange for this to happen prior to  getting killed himself?  Who knows?  Was Pat Garrett "in" on the cover up?  The campfire didn't reveal any great conclusions other than Pat Garret did not kill Billy the Kid that night.

My friend Steve Woods from Denton, Texas came back to Lincoln again this year to participate in the festivities surrounding the Lincoln County War.  We had participated two years ago and were unable to make it last year because I had a commitment in merry old England.  My wife, Linda, and I attended the 2012 Olympics. 

This year's festivities have taken on a little different "look" as our friend, Bennie Long, at the Lincoln Monument site had moved on to another position.  Managing the Monument now is Gary Cozzens.  Steve and I found all the folks at the historic monument: Ira, Bill and several others including Larry Pope from Fort Stanton really pleasant and fun to be around.    They all did their absolute best in making us feel welcome.  I had contacted Gary a week or so prior to the event and let him know that Steve and I would be cooking a meal for them and they just needed to let us know which one they wanted.  They chose breakfast.

Gary Cozzens, Manager New Mexico State Historic Site

I got my 1927 Model T chuck wagon loaded on my goose neck trailer in El Paso, Texas and headed up the mountain to Ruidoso, New Mexico.  I had a lunch date with an ole friend Dulley Gwinn at the Ranchers Grill in Ruidoso on Thursday.  Just after arriving the sky opened up and began to dump a bunch of rain, a sight I had not seen in quite some time.  I suspect it rained a couple of inches in about two hours.  Had a nice prime rib sandwich and visit and then proceeded to Lincoln a distance of only 37miles.  I was able to get on site, beside the monument office and get my teepee set up and the fly for our cooking area set up before Steve arrived at around 4 or 5 pm after about a 9-10 hour drive.  We completed our teepees and basic necessities for the next morning.  We had the stove set up with the coffee pot on the ready so we could have our cup  of

Joe the first thing upon arising in beautiful Lincoln. 

Then we took leave from Lincoln and backtracked down the road to Tinnie's, NM to the Silver Dollar Restaurant.  We were waited on by a very capable staff. In fact we met the chef outside before going in, and he recommended the Beef Stroganoff.   Sage Leeyer was our server, and we found she was the same horseback lady that I had taken pictures of at Fort Stanton a couple of weeks earlier.  We had a great time with her telling and receiving stories.  We did decide on the Beef Stroganoff and an excellent choice it turned out to be.  Since they have hand cut-fresh french fries--I had to have some of them as well.  We visited with many of the wait staff and the chefs in the back.  There are works of art on display in the dining areas, one of which was the beautiful actress of the 1880's, Lily Langtry and another, a 17th century clock and yet another which was a mirror frame dating back to the 18th century.

 

Great stuff!  Quite a nice dining experience.  If you have never been to this particular place you are in for a treat.

Then it was back to Lincoln and our awaiting teepee quarters.  We were situated just a little ways down from the Tunstall Store and across from the Dolan House.  Looking up we were surrounded by tree covered mountains with the little valley opening up to the southwest....the direction we longingly looked for the hopeful rains that never came. 

 The next post will get into what was actually going on in the camp just off the main street in Lincoln, New Mexico.